Brush care system

ABSTRACT

A brush care system is provided for cleaning, washing and drying brushes in beautification or painting. The system includes a washing part, a cleaning part and a drying part. The washing part and the cleaning part fit together for convenient storage while the cleaning part resides inside the system. The system may be sized to accommodate one or more brushes. The washing part may hold water, soap, liquid, or solution. The cleaning part allows water to be drained off and allows brush bristles to be rubbed against it to remove paint, dirt, cosmetics, and other material. The drying part functions as a stand for drying the cleaned brushes and is perforated to allow air circulation. The bottom of the drying part may be sealed so that a lower portion of it may hold clean water for rinsing. The washing part may be configured with more than one partition.

This application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application61/266,993, filed Dec. 4, 2009, entitled Brush Care System, inventorsDiane Adler Baker and Malcolm Davenport Plant, which is herebyincorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes.

The application is also related to issued U.S. Pat. No. 7,140,061 toBaker and Plant, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety for all purposes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Brushes for fine arts and for cosmetics come in many shapes and sizes;they are valued and valuable tools. Often much of a user's time—time shewould rather spend in beautification or painting or otheractivities—gets taken up by caring for and managing her brushes. It isimportant for people using any kind of cosmetics or paint to take careof brushes. For cosmetics, dirty brushes can cause skin irritation orinfection and can carry impurities to the face and back into thecosmetic product. For paint, improper care will cause rapiddeterioration, necessitating replacement. Good quality brushes areexpensive, so brush preservation is important.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A brush care system is provided that has two parts which fit togetherfor convenient storage. One part is a washing cup and is sized toaccommodate a tablet of soap or other cleaning materials in the bottomof the cup. Tablet herein refers to a compacted form, such as a bar ofsoap (in contrast to a powder solid), and does not refer to a specificshape. A tablet can be any compacted shape. Water can be added tomoisten (or immerse) the soap, while a cleaning screen retains the soapand allows a brush to be rubbed on the soap through the cleaning screen.The cleaning screen allows for gentle agitation of the brush bristles tomore efficiently remove paint, dirt, cosmetics, and other material fromthe brush bristles. The cleaning screen also allows water or other fluidto be drained off while retaining the soap. The washing cup may beconfigured with more than one partition.

A second part functions as a stand for drying the cleaned brushes. Thisstand is perforated to allow air circulation. The stand may be a dryingglass. The bottom of the drying glass may be sealed so that a lowerportion of the drying glass may hold clean water for rinsing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a brush care system in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 2 shows a brush care system in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention more particularly depicting a system for drying apaint brush.

FIG. 3 shows a brush care system in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention, more particularly depicting an embodiment of awashing cup and some alternative embodiments of a cleaning screen thatcan be used in the system.

FIG. 4 shows a brush care system in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention, more particularly depicting the assembled system.

FIG. 5 shows a brush care system in accordance with an embodiment of thepresent invention, more particularly depicting partitions of a washingcup.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A brush care system 100 includes a drying glass 102 including a bottom101, a wall or walls 103 and apertures 104 a-104 f, a brush cleaner 106including a cleaning screen 108 including a removal handle 110, and awashing cup 112, as shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 1 also shows a surfactanttablet 114 for use with an embodiment of the present system. In apreferred embodiment, all components except for surfactant tablet 114are manufactured from plastic. In alternative embodiments, the relevantcomponents can be manufactured from ceramic, glass, or any materialsthat enable functionality. The system is configured to be lightweightand portable. It is particularly contemplated that the system be sizedto accommodate plural brushes of varying sizes and shapes, althoughsmaller and larger systems are also provided for.

In one embodiment, apertures may be in the bottom 101 in the dryingglass 102 for better ventilation when drying brushes. In anotherembodiment, the bottom 101 in the drying glass 102 may be sealed soclean water can be held in the lower portion 204 for rinsing thebrushes, as shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 shows a system in accordance with an embodiment of the presentinvention in use with a brush 202. As generally depicted in FIG. 2,washing cup 112 holds water and a surfactant tablet 114, such as atablet of soap, compressed detergent, or other solid cleaner. Brushcleaner 106 is positioned inside washing cup so as to retain surfactanttablet 114. The water level in washing cup 112 can be above or below thelevel of cleaning screen 108 of brush cleaner 106. (In alternativeembodiments, washing cup 112 can hold plain water or another cleaningliquid, such as a chemical cleaner, or can hold a solution as forexample detergent powder, detergent liquid, or liquid, powder, or solidsoap in water. No surfactant tablet need be used.) Handle 110 allows foreasy removal and replacement of brush cleaner 106.

In a preferred embodiment, the invention provides a dynamic cleaningsystem in which brush cleaner 106 rests atop surfactant tablet 114 andlowers within washing cup 112 over time as surfactant tablet 114dissolves. In many uses, tablet 114 is a cake of soap or other solublematerial, and cleaner 106 will lower very gradually as it dissolves,over many uses, so long as washing cup 112 is drained of water aftereach use.

The system is also hygienic because it provides for air-drying and aircirculation, which minimizes the transfer of pollutants on cloth. Thewashing cup also enables proper disposal of cleaning materials andcleaned detritus.

A user takes brush 202 and scrapes, rubs, or agitates the bristles (notshown) against cleaning screen 108 to remove impurities, old cosmetics,detritus, and/or paint. A representative brush showing bristles or otherbrush fibers is depicted in U.S. Pat. No. 7,140,061 FIGS. 1A and 1B;other brushes and bristle and fiber configurations are well known tothose skilled in the art and are contemplated within the scope of theinvention. Brush fibers and bristles are not used by way of limitation,but rather to describe generally longitudinal hairs, bristles, fibers,brush, or in some cases, a pad that is used to hold and apply paint,varnish, tint, or cosmetics to a surface.

Cleaning screen 108 can comprise apertures defined by a grid (so thatsquare or any other shaped apertures are defined), or can compriseanother configuration of aperture and material, such as bars and spacesor pegs, so that a rough or differentiated surface is created thatallows for friction and agitation of bristles.

Different configurations of apertures are provided for within the scopeof the invention. Two different kinds of apertures are possible, whichcould be roughly characterized as asymmetric or symmetric. Todistinguish the two, consider any aperture with respect to arbitrarilyoriented perpendicular axes x and y within the plane of the(substantially flat) screen. Any aperture has a unique minimallyenclosing rectangle with sides parallel to those axes. Consider the xdimension and the y dimension of that rectangle. If the ratio of thesedimensions is outside of the range [0.67, 1.5], call the apertureasymmetric. For example, apertures formed as the gaps between parallelwires connecting two sides of a square aperture defined in the cleaner(screen or grid) would generally be asymmetric. If an aperture's ratioof x and y dimensions falls *within* [0.67, 1.5], call it symmetric. Forexample, roughly square apertures formed by a fine grid of parallel wirepieces with similar x and y pitch, would be symmetric. Of course, theapparatus can include a combination of different apertures, includingboth symmetric and asymmetric. The scope of the present inventionencompasses both symmetric and asymmetric apertures as herein defined.

Clean water can be retained in a water-retaining portion 204 of dryingglass 102 for rinsing. Then the clean water can be emptied and the usercan place the brush in the stand bristles down, for drying. In analternative, a notch or retainer is provided in drying glass 102 so asto retain brush 202 in an upright position. Apertures 104 a-104 f allowfor air circulation. Before placing a brush bristles down, a userpreferably places a protective sleeve or other covering over thebristles. One example of such a protective sleeve is described in U.S.Pat. No. 7,140,061 to Baker et al., the contents and all aspects ofwhich are incorporated herein by reference for all purposes. Inalternatives, other covers, sleeves, or cups can be placed over thebristles before the brush is placed bristles-down in the drying glass.

FIG. 3 shows washing cup 112 with some alternative embodiments 302 and304 of the cleaning screen 108 of brush cleaner 106. As depicted in FIG.1 and succeeding drawings, brush cleaner 106 is generally shaped like aflat disk with parallel apertures and bars, in order to provide a roughsurface to rub the brush bristles against. Many alternatives arecontemplated, such as those depicted at 302 and 304. The brush cleanerneed not be a circle; it can be any shape, such as a half circle,triangle, or square that fits into the washing cup. The rough surface onthe brush cleaner can be provided by square, rectangle, or triangleapertures (as, for example, in a screen), by round holes, or even bybumps or protrusions on the upper surface of the cleaner. Inalternatives, a blotting cloth is provided

FIG. 4 shows an assembled drying, cleaning and washing apparatus 400. Ina preferred embodiment, drying glass 102 snaps securely into washing cup112. In other alternatives, drying glass 102 and washing cup 112 can bethreaded so as to screw together, or can attach by any known means thatpreserves functionality. In either alternative, brush cleaner 106resides inside the assembled apparatus.

In one embodiment, the washing cup 112 is configured as having onereceptacle for liquid or cleaner, as shown in FIG. 1. The one and onlyreceptacle is the entire interior of the washing cup.

In other embodiments, it is possible to have more than one receptacle inthe washing cup 112, which can be defined by a partition or an enclosureor separated area in the washing cup. The advantage is to individuallycontain more than one kind of water, liquid or solution in one washingcup. One partition may contain a solution for cleaning while another maycontain clean water for rinsing. When there are two or more receptacles,the receptacles may or may not have the same shape as the washing cup.In one embodiment, a washing cup is round and includes two partitionsconfigured as two half circles. In one embodiment, a round washing cupwith plural receptacles may be configured as two circles with differentdiameters that are concentric or non-concentric. Partitions are enabledby a divider or dividers in-between which are either as high as or lowerthan the washing cup. The dividers may be made of the same material asthe washing cup. With larger systems for plural brushes, morereceptacles may be needed.

FIG. 5 shows top views of the washing cup 112 with embodied partitions.Top view 502 is for the washing cup 112 when there is only onereceptacle. Top view 504 is for the washing cup 112 when the partitionsare two half circles with divider 514. Top view 506 is for the washingcup 112 when the partitions are two concentric circles with divider 516.Top view 508 is for the washing cup 112 when the partitions are twonon-concentric circles with divider 518.

In the preceding specification various embodiments and aspects of thepresent invention has been described with reference to specific examplesthereof. It will, however, be evident that various modifications andchanges may be made without departing from the broader spirit and scopeof the present invention as set forth in the claims that follow. Thespecification and drawings are accordingly to be regarded in anillustrative rather than restrictive sense. These and other variationsupon and modifications to illustrated embodiments are provided for bythe present invention, the scope of which is defined by the followingclaims.

1. A brush care system comprising: means for containing liquid forcleaning brushes, said brushes including brush fibers; means forproviding friction, said means for providing friction being positionedwith respect to said liquid such that a brush can be wetted and rubbedagainst it, so as to agitate the brush fibers and remove materialadhering to them.
 2. A brush care system as recited in claim 1, whereinsaid liquid comprises a solution including surfactant.
 3. A brush caresystem as recited in claim 2, wherein said surfactant is included in asoluble solid that dissolves to release surfactant in said liquid.
 4. Abrush care system as recited in claim 1 wherein said liquid is water. 5.A brush care system as recited in claim 1 wherein said means forproviding friction is immersed in said liquid.
 6. A brush care system asrecited in claim 1, wherein the means for friction comprises a screendefining plural apertures.
 7. An apparatus for providing care for one ormore brushes comprising: a drying glass, said drying glass providing areceptacle for drying brushes, including at least one wall; a cleaner,said cleaner providing a friction-producing surface against which abrush can be agitated; a cup for retaining liquid for washing saidbrushes, said cup being further capable of retaining cleaning materialchosen from the set of solid, liquid, and particulate cleaning material;said drying glass further including one or more apertures in said wallof said drying glass, said apertures providing airflow to aid in drying.8. A brush care apparatus as recited in claim 7 further comprising: atleast one partition in said cup, said at least one partition dividingsaid cup into plural receptacles, said plural receptacles being capableof retaining liquid.
 9. A brush care apparatus as recited in claim 7further including a securing mechanism that combines said glass, saidcleaner and said cup into an assembly.
 10. A brush care apparatus asrecited in claim 9, wherein said securing mechanism snaps together orscrews together via threading said glass and said cup, said cleanerresiding within said assembly.
 11. A brush care apparatus as recited inclaim 7, wherein said drying glass includes at least one wall and abottom connected to each other.
 12. A brush care apparatus as recited inclaim 7, wherein said drying glass further includes apertures in saidbottom of said glass.
 13. A brush care apparatus as recited in claim 7,wherein said glass has a sealed bottom that defines a water-retainingportion.
 14. A brush care apparatus as recited in claim 7, wherein saidcleaner comprises a cleaning screen, said cleaning screen having a roughsurface.
 15. A brush care apparatus as recited in claim 7, wherein saidcleaner is substantially flat.
 16. A brush care apparatus as recited inclaim 7, wherein said cleaner further comprises a removal handleconnected to said cleaning screen.
 17. A brush care apparatus as recitedin claim 14, wherein said rough surface in said cleaning screen isprovided by at least one aperture, a minimal enclosing rectangle forsaid aperture having an x dimension and a y dimension of that rectangle,the ratio of the x dimension and the y dimension being outside of therange [0.67, 1.5].
 18. A brush care apparatus as recited in claim 14,wherein said rough surface in said cleaning screen is provided by atleast one aperture, a minimal enclosing rectangle for said at least oneaperture having an x dimension and a y dimension of that rectangle, theratio of the x dimension and the y span being within the range [0.67,1.5].
 19. A brush care apparatus as recited in claim 14, wherein saidrough surface in said cleaning screen is provided by bumps orprotrusions.
 20. A brush care apparatus as recited in claim 8, whereinsaid cup includes two partitions, said cup being shaped as a circle andsaid two partitions being configured as two circles with differentdiameters and being concentric or non-concentric.
 21. A brush careapparatus as recited in claim 8, wherein said glass, said cleaner andsaid cup are made of one or more materials chosen from the set ofplastic, ceramic, and glass.
 22. A brush care system as recited in claim3 wherein said soluble surfactant is in a tablet form.
 23. A brush caresystem as recited in claim 3 wherein said means for providing frictiondynamically lowers within the washing cup over time as the surfactantdissolves.